NUS ranked No.1 Asian university

SINGAPORE - The National University of Singapore has become Asia's top university for the first time, according to the World University Rankings.

NUS moved up to 24th on the global list, published on Tuesday, to take over the mantle from the University of Hong Kong (HKU).

The Nanyang Technological University also reached its best position in the table, jumping six spots to become seventh in the region and 41st in the world.

The World University Rankings, arguably the best-known and respected rankings, have been published since 2004 by London-based education consultancy Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). It is widely consulted, including by prospective students and university professionals.

Overall, American universities dominated the list, occupying seven of the top 10 places.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology maintained its top spot, followed by Harvard University, the University of Cambridge, University College London and Imperial College London.

Institutions are given an overall score using six indicators: academic and employer reputation, student-faculty ratio, citations (in academic publications) per faculty, international faculty and student mix.